Comparing Tipalti vs Basware for UK Businesses

Once you’ve identified the need for automation, comparing the top solutions can be exhausting. How do you know if you’re choosing software that improves your situation? Can it be something that leads to greater cost savings and happier finance teams—or will it leave you in the lurch?

The short answer is you don’t, but with enough research and collaboration, a business can make the most informed decision possible.

In this article, we compare two key players in the AP automation game: Tipalti and Basware. We discuss standout features, pricing, integrations, and everything else you need to know to get the digital ball rolling.

What Does Tipalti Do? 

Tipalti is a robust, cloud-based solution that offers end-to-end payables automation to 196 countries in 120+ currencies via 50+ different payment methods. The comprehensive platform covers everything from procurement to smart invoice processing, PO management, expenses, FX solutions, multi-entity channels, and more.

The ultramodern solution facilitates global payment processing, serving both traditional invoice-based AP workflows and operations looking to automate non-PO payments. It streamlines complex payables and employee expenses with an all-in-one solution that helps a business eliminate 80% of the manual tasks involved with accounts payable and expense management.

Tipalti Product Capabilities Overview

Tipalti is more than simple accounting software. It offers advanced solutions designed to grow with your business.

AP Automation

Tipalti’s AP automation and global payments software offers:

• A touchless invoicing process
• Tax compliance
• 2 and 3-way PO matching
• Payment reconciliation
• Expenses and reimbursements

The system is also designed to support a multi-entity cloud architecture that provides a business with enterprise-grade financial controls and leverages fraud detection.

Procure-to-Pay

Tipalti has an integrated procure-to-pay solution that helps you manage company purchases, reduce processing times, improve spend, and elevate procurement processes. It streamlines PO creation, leverages faster requisitions, and promotes real-time budget visibility while minimising headcount and facilitating growth beyond the UK.

Improve adoption with faster implementation and time to value. The system also seamlessly integrates with Slack and Jira to simplify contract management, accelerate approvals, and consolidate the entire payable process.

Supplier Management

Tipalti offers a client-branded portal with your choice of payment methods. Suppliers receive proactive, white-labelled payment status notifications (via email) and have access to a 24/7 self-service portal. A business can quickly and efficiently onboard payees with 26K+ validation rules, reducing enquiries on vendor invoices and payment terms, while reducing human errors by up to 66%.

Fee splitting incentivises partners to adopt safer, more efficient payment methods. Tipalti’s advanced vendor management gives you a consolidated view of payables at the HQ level, supporting global efforts across the whole enterprise.

Global Reach

Tipalti reaches across the world, speaking to businesses in multiple languages, currencies, and payment methods. Payment channels servicing the UK include:

• BACS
• SEPA
• Wire
• Global ACH (local bank transfer)
• PayPal MT (in USD) and PayPal AD

UK payment methods also include Intercash and paper cheques (in USD). The system also lets you decide whether to split or shift payment processing fees to payees, reducing business costs and increasing cash flow.

Smart Integrations

Tipalti aligns with all types of ERP systems. Tipalti ERP integrations for the UK include:

• Sage Intacct
• QuickBooks
• NetSuite
• Acumatica
• Microsoft Dynamics
• Xero
• SAP

With dedicated implementation experts, Tipalti has a proven track record of getting UK customers live in just weeks.

Tipalti Pricing

The Tipalti pricing model is designed to grow with your business. Pricing starts at £119 per month for the platform fee. As an organisation grows in complexity, it can seamlessly upgrade to Tipalti’s more advanced capabilities at any time.

What Does Basware Do?

Basware is a Finnish, cloud-based AP automation and P2P SaaS that enables global businesses to reduce costs, manage spend, and forecast growth. The accounts payable automation solution is an industry-leading provider of invoice management and boasts clients like HP and Mercedes-Benz.

The advanced platform serves large organisations across 70+ countries, holding offices in 10 European countries. The brand offers an extensive network of European resellers, and additional offices in India, the US, and Canada.

Achieve a new level of efficiency with a system that handles over 220 million invoices each year. Basware offers an e-invoicing network with +2M members and can accept virtually any invoice format from EDI/XML to PDF, paper, e-invoices, etc. The platform’s strengths lie upstream in catalogue management tools, preferred suppliers, and negotiated pricing contracts. The system also has built-in AI and ML capabilities for smarter invoice management.

Basware Product Capabilities Overview

Established decades ago, Basware has remained at the forefront of challenges for UK businesses in payables and accounts receivable management.

AP Automation

Basware is an AI/ML-powered solution that eliminates manual processes and digitises the majority of your global invoices. AP automation capabilities enable you to:

• Capture every invoice with 100% accuracy using SmartPDF technology
• Automate non-PO invoices using custom spend plans, AI coding, and better approval workflows
• Unbeatable invoice match rate (even when the PO was generated in another system, or the figures don’t line up perfectly)

• Authorise payments up to 30x faster, earning early payment discounts and saving on labour costs
• Stay compliant with automated tax code handling and tax calculations

Basware’s automated AP system also supplies a business with a centralised dashboard, for 100% spend visibility without lifting a finger.

Invoice Management

One of Basware’s strongest offerings is invoice and document management. The system accepts a variety of invoice formats (EDI/XML, IDOC, UBL, EDIFACT, electronic, paper, etc.) in 175+ countries and boasts features like routing, mapping, and invoice processing in large volumes.

The system also offers extensive features for GL coding (both for PO and non-PO invoices), as well as analytics that relate to continuous improvement. Basware does not use OCR to scan invoices, but rather, a programme called SmartPDF.

Partner Network

Basware is partnered with 220+ global e-invoicing networks, offering the largest open commerce network of buyers and suppliers (over 2 million). The system is also connected to the PEPPOL and Norwegian EHF networks, offering extensive choices in how invoices are delivered.

Supplier onboarding and enablement services are available. However, there are no branding opportunities or choices for payment methods. The system enables greater visibility into invoice and payment status, with an emphasis on invoice submission.

International Coverage

It’s no wonder Basware offers effective international coverage with the world’s largest open network. An organisation benefits from 40+ years of specialised experience identifying and implementing best practises while reducing risk worldwide (covering 60+ county regulations).

Achieve 100% e-invoicing coverage across 190 countries with no-registration invoice ingestion.

Popular Integrations

The system also gives businesses the ability to integrate across 250 ERPs in more than 190 countries. Use any combination of multi-ERP environments, whether that’s with SAP, Oracle, Microsoft, or any other ERP.

Basware Pricing

Basware offers a scalable subscription module for pricing based on a variety of factors, like level of commitment, customisation, additional functionalities, etc. You need to speak to the sales team for a business-case calculation and proposal that’s specific to your company’s needs.

Features of Tipalti vs. Basware

Which Solution Works Best for Your Business (and Why)

Selecting the best AP automation solution that aligns with business needs is a critical choice, especially for companies looking to grow. Look for something that can scale with your business while being simple enough for universal adoption. Here are a few scenarios in which Tipalti or Basware would be the optimal solution.

When to Choose Tipalti

You want full end-to-end AP automation

While both Tipalti and Basware are invoice management solutions, Tipalti also offers best-in-class supplier management, tax compliance, fraud detection, advanced FX capabilities, and more. It’s a complete AP automation solution that’s about more than just invoices.

Basware may also lack downstream payment capabilities that make it a full procure-to-pay solution. Whereas Tipalti offers robust, in-house payment capabilities to 196 countries, in 120 currencies, using different payment methods.

You want expense management in addition to AP Automation

Basware does not have a formal expense management solution. It only enables a business to handle receipt submission and expense claims within the same workflow as invoices.

Tipalti, on the other hand, offers a connected suite of AP automation solutions that include spend management. 

You are a growth-minded midmarket company

Scalability is Tipalti’s middle name. The solution was designed to grow with your business. The platform boasts a 99% retention rate (vs. a 90% rate for Basware). Fast growth is indicative of Tipalti’s success with +40% growth rates in 2023 vs

Tipalti is continually improving its core strengths in AP automation and payments with new features and rapidly deploying new solutions. E-invoicing is the emphasis for Basware, although Tipalti offers that as well.

When to Choose Basware

You are a European enterprise company

If more than 50% of your business is in Europe, Basware might be a good option. Additionally, the brand usually targets customers with invoice volumes of 50,000 or more. This can make it an expensive option for MM businesses (which may also be overkill).

You have time for a longer implementation

Basware takes its time with implementation, which can last anywhere from three to four months. Supplier onboarding can also run a lengthy process, as it relies on payer communication. On the other hand, Tipalti offers a faster time to value, with supplier enablement programmes (SEP), automated portals, and a broader focus.

You require catalogue management for procurement

If you prefer e-procurement processes with catalogue management, Basware may be complementary. The solution’s strength lies upstream in sourcing with robust catalogue management tools, negotiated pricing contracts, preferred suppliers, etc. This helps to provide a consumer-style shopping experience from pre-set vendors.

In comparison, Tipalti’s procurement offers an employee-friendly intake workflow to increase adoption, plus Amazon punch-out capabilities. The system also has integrations with 30+ ticketing systems, like Slack, to support stakeholders involved in the purchase approval process (IT, security, legal, etc.).

What Our Customers Are Saying

A huge benefit to the team has been visibility. Tipalti provides a better interface to see where global cash is flowing each week and provides the full picture required for strategic planning in each  of our entities.  

– Becca Simmons, Head of Finance, EMEA Vivino

We’ve streamlined our payment workload by 200 percent. I was spending one day every week setting payments and onboarding vendors manually, and now this has been condensed to a few hours over an entire month.

-Cherith Aasen, Staff Accountant, RealWear

We’ve given all our people an additional 20% of their time back across the board. This is equal to the productivity of 4 additional people we did not have to hire to handle our global payables. It adds up to 20 days a month saved in overall work across the team  of 20.

– Jake Sheppard, Chief Product Officer Aragon Advertising

Future-Proof Your Business with AP Automation

Accounts payable automation technology helps a business shift a significant amount of time from data entry to strategic finance, positively contributing to business growth, while reducing costs.

Although both Tipalti and Basware offer user-friendly invoice processing and AP automation, only one offers global payment solutions that increase efficiency and handle global regulatory compliance. These capabilities are Tipalti’s core competency. 

While Tipalti can assist large corporations or small businesses with their AP process, Basware is more geared toward larger operations. Consider an overall comparison of Tipalti vs. Basware to decide which is the better fit for your business needs and budget.

Conclusion

Tipalti’s expertise is AP automation and global supplier payments, further downstream, whereas Basware’s focus is more on procurement, not payables.

Tipalti’s PO management features provide a low-cost, modern procurement solution that covers the entire purchase-to-pay cycle. The system has a faster time to value, with quick implementations and scalable solutions.

Tipalti’s PO management, AP automation, and global payment solutions are reasonably priced, with 100% transparency. If you’re seeking a reliable, efficient, and cost-effective AP automation solution that empowers finance teams and drives growth, Tipalti is the answer.

Take the next step towards transforming your accounts payable processes, and get started with Tipalti today.